Dry-room.



L. F. BOWERS.

DRY ROOM.

APPLICATION FILED APR-23. I912.

Patented July 20, 1915. I

ZZZ

MW NM Attorneys.

L. F. BQWERS,

DRY BOOM. APPLICATION FILED APR.23, I912. 1,147,298. Patented July 20, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Att rn eys L. F. B0\WEBS.

DRY ROOM. APPLICATION FILED APR.23. I912.

Patented July 20, 1915. s

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Witnesses Zk/wZlZaw /v Inventor Attorneys.

L. F. BOWERS.

DRY ROOM.

APPLICATION FILED APILZS. 19l2.

1,147,298, Patented July 20, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

9 m I Witnesses I- t Inventor Attorneys.

UNITED STATES- LIONEL F. BOWERS', OF COLUMBIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO COLUMBIA MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF COLUMBIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

DRY-ROOM.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, LIONEL F. BOWERS, a citizen of the United States, residing at C0- lumbia, in the county of Lancaster and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Dry-Room, of which the following is a specification.

This invention re ates to laundry drying rooms. j 4 The primary object of the inventionis to provide a drying 'roomof; that character in which the clothes are conveyed through the same by a trolley, with means for maintaining a continuous circulation of'dry hot air.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for forcing the mo sture which arisesfrom the steam, which 1s used as a heating element, from the room or box.

A furtheriobject isto so dispose the ra diators with respect to the baflie plates whlch form the inner walls of the room that when the air in the drying compartment is forced pdownward that the same after reaching a point adjacent the floor of the room will travel upward exteriorly of the drying com- A still further object of this invention is:

to provide a 'conveyer supporting mechanism whichimay be readily assembled andwhich may be conveniently disposed within the room or box.

Y Anotherobjectof the invention is to pro- 1 vide means for driving the conveyer-in whlch the driving element will discontinue the,

movement which transmits power to the conveyerin case of accidental stoppage of the 1 pp us thereby preventing the breakage of the conveyer should'the same be held against movement by the stripping mechanism or other obstruction. A

With the foregoing and other ob ects in view which will appear as the description.

proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the I details of construction hereinafter described and claimed it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be madewithin the scope. of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention. 1

In the drawings,.F-igure-1 is a longitudinal section. Fig. 2 atop plan view, a portion of the ceiling being broken away to show the drying apparatus, anda portion of thehori- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 28, 1912. Serial No. 692,705.

Patented July 20, 1915.

zontally disposed radiators being broken away to show the arrangementof the fan and the conveyer tightening mechanism which latter mechanism is designed to impart longitudinal movement 'to one of the sprockets which support the same, to compensate for the expansion and contraction of the conveying element. Fig.- 3 is a top plan view illustrating the driving mechanism. Fig. 4 a transverse sectlon taken on the hue 4.4= of Fig. 2. a Fig. 5a transversesection of the box or cabinet is provided with suit able openings 17 through which the conveyer travels, and a centrally arranged door 19.

I Disposed interiorly of the cabinet are four vertically extending beams 20, there being two disposed at the front of the cabinet and two rearwardly of the same.- Each ,pair of beams supporta frame 21, the frame21 bemg formed with extensions 22 angle irons 24 connecting the extensions 22 with the upper terminals of the beams 20, the frame forming a support for the conveying mechanism and the baflie walls which will be hereinafter described, in detail.

Disposed longitudinally of the cabinet and adjacentthe floor 25 there of are the manifold distributers 26, said distributcrs being arranged adjacent the walls of the cabinet, thedistributers being con:

nectedbythe transverse pipes 27 the rearmost pipe 27 being connected to a suitable steam supply. Connected to the manifolds 26 and extending vertically and'parallel with the side walls are thepipes 28 which-constitute the radiators, these pipes are, continuedto a point adj acent. the ceiling of the cabinet and.

are then conductedparallelrwith the ceiling, to a point adjacent the center of thecabinet,

the terminals ofthe-pipes of each side being connected to a manifoldBO, the manifolds at their terminals being connected by pipes31. It .willbe noted from this construction that heatwill be generated at the-side walls and the ceiling of the cabinet Bafiie plates 32 are disposed parallel with the side ,andfrear walls, said plates being formed of metal, and

terminating at a point above the floor. The plates are supported by the frame 21, the portions 33 of said frame which are disposed at an angle, supporting the angularly disposed portions 34 of the baffle plates, the baffle plates terminating short of the ceiling of the cabinet thus allowing a continuous circulation of air, means which will be hereinafter described, forcing the upper strata of air down, displacing the lower strata which arise through the heating chamber, formed between the baffle plates and the side walls of the cabinet, the air rising again to the top of the cabinet.

The conveying mechanism consists of the U-shaped track 35 which may be disposed in any suitable course, consistent with the dimensions of the cabinet, the track being supported by the frame 21. The trolley is supported by the chain 36, the standards which support the goods being connected to the chain, said standards being driven by the chain, their upper terminals being supported by rollers which ride in the channels of the U-shaped track 35. The chains 36 in the form illustrated in the drawings, pass about sprockets 37, 38, 39, 40 and 41, these sprockets being disposed in the usual manner within the cabinet, the shaft which drives the sprocket 37, which transmits movement to the same being supported by the rearwardly disposed transverse beam 22. The portion of the track which extends beyond the cabinet is supported by the frame 40, the longitudinal bars 41 of which are secured to the beam or truss 21 being connected by the intersecting transversely extending bars 42, the terminals of the longitudinally disposed bar being formed with apertured cars 43 which receive the outer terminals of truss rodsor shrouds 44, the terminals 45 of which extend within ears 46 of lugs 47 which are secured to the cabinet. The many advantages of supporting this portion of the conveyer which extends beyond the cabinet will be clearly apparent as it will be noted that this form of truss rod support may be readily disassembled when it is desired to ship the apparatus and that the same may be readily secured in position when the apparatus is assembled.

The conveyer and the fans which will be hereinafter described, are driven by any suitable motor, the motor transmitting power to the drive shaft 47 provided with pulleys 48 which drive the above mentioned fans. The shaft 47. is supported by brackets 49 and 50, a pulley 51 being disposed adjacent the bracket 50 the belt 52 which passes over said pulley transmitting power through a suitable clutch control drive to the conveying mechanism. lnterposed between the pulley 48 and the pulley 51 and supported by the shaft 47 is a friction clutch 54, this clutch being of such construction that should the conveying mechanism be temporarily stopped through contact of the clothes with the stripper, or other obstruction, the resistance thus offered to the conveyer will hold the belt 52, it being noted that when a pull is directed on the belt 52, that the disk 55 will be held against movement, this construction forming a part of a separate application filed Apr. 23, 1912, Serial No. 697,751.

The many advantages of this construction will be clearly apparent as it will be noted that the operation of the conveyer will immediately cease as soon as the same is stopped in any manner, by meeting with an obstruction or by the hand of the operator placing the goods upon the hangers. The belt 52 transmits movement to the pulley 57, which is loose on the shaft 59, the gear being also driven by said pulley. This gear 60 drives a gear 61 mounted upon the counter shaft 62. A sleeve 63 is loosely mounted upon this counter shaft, said sleeve being provided with a clutch face 64. The clutch is splined upon the shaft 62 and is arranged to -lock the sleeve 63 to the counter shaft. Arranged upon this sleeve is a gear 66 which meshes with a gear 67 mounted upon the sleeve 68 which is loosely mounted. on the shaft 59. A beveled pinion 69 is mounted upon this sleeve, said pinion meshing with the bevel gear which drives the shaft 71 on which the sprocket 37 is mounted, which drives the conveying mechanism. It will be noted by this construction that the movement of the conveyer may be readily controlled by the lever 64 which isdisposed at a point adjacent the front of the cabinet and which is actuated by pull rods 65, the shaft 66 being rotated to throw the clutch 65 into and out of engagement with the clutch face 64 of the sleeve 63 which is loosely mounted upon the shaft 62, this construction forming a part of a separate application, filed Apr. 25, 1912, Serial No. 692,706.

Fan shafts 66 and 67 are disposed within bearings 68 and 69 which are supported by the ceiling of the cabinet, said fan shafts being disposed at the transverse center of the ceiling, the fans being of a diameter consistent with the width of the cabinet. These shafts 66 and 67 are supported by brackets 7 0 and 71, the shaft 66 being provided with a pulley 72 disposed within the bracket to support said shaft, a pulley 73 being similarly disposed within the bracket which supports the shaft 67 there being a second pulley 73 disposed on said shaft, a belt 74 driving the pulley 73 which is disposed on the terminal of the shaft 67 which extends beyond the bracket 71, the belt 74 passing over the pulley 75 which is mounted upon the shaft 76 which is driven by the belt 77 which passes over the pulley 48, the shaft 77 being supported by brackets 78 and 79 which are secured to the ceiling-of the cabinet. The pulleys 72' and 73which are disposed within thebracket and secured to the shafts which drive the fans, are connected by the belt 80, the fan shafts in this the angularly disposed portionsof the bafiie walls. It will be noted, by this construction,- that the blastof the fans 82 and 83 will be directed toward the bottomof the cabinet,

the fans forcing the air beneath the'baflie walls and through the heating chamber formed between said'walls and the side and;

rear walls of the cabinet. v Attentionis called to the fact that the fanswillnot only direct the air between these walls, but that the same will force the moisture-from the air through the opening in the front of the cabinet through which the conveyer passes, thus, maintaining within the cabinet aconstant free circulation of dry air. Disposed beneath each of the fans are cups 85 and 86 which prevent the fans fromcreating a suc tion, which would tend to draw the air upwardly.

Attention is called to thefactthat the entire structure issuch as may be'readily set up, and the various parts be quickly dissembled, for shipment. Attention is; also called to the fact that this drying apparatus provides means for maintaining. a constant circulation of air from which the moisture is removed, the air being highly heated, as itpasses between the baffie walls and the wall of the cabinet, being again heated by the longitudinally disposed radiators as it passes over said baffle walls and before it contacts with the clothes.

The sprocket wheel 39 around which the conveyer passes adjacent the front of the cabinet is supported by the bracket 86 which embraces said wheel and is provided with the'extension 87 which supports the rod 88 in any suitable manner. The bracket 86 is supported for a sliding movement by a U- beam 92 which is supported by a bracket 89 which is secured to a forward transverse beam 21, a slot 90'being formed in the beam 92 to permit the same to move freely with respect to the said beam. The U-beam 92 is disposed longitudinally and centrally of the cabinet, the bracket 86 being formed with an extension 93 which supports rollers 94 which ride on said U-beam. 7

It will thus be noted that when the rod 88 is moved forward, it will tighten the chain on which the clothes supports 36 are mounted. The rod extends to a point adjacent the rear of the cabinet and passes throughfahanger '94'Iwhich is secured tothe U-beaIn 92,; the hanger 94! supporting the transversely disposed shaft 95 onzwhich the.

pinion 96ispositioned, the shaft 95-extendinglbeyond' the bracket; a drum 97being dis posed on .said shaft, a cable 9'8 passing over.

said drum, said-cable carrying aiflwei'ghtE 99 which has a tendency to revolve the drum 97, this moveme'ntof the drum causingthe, shaft 95 to rotate the rotation ofthe sh'a'ft- 95 thrustingfthe rod 88 for-ward,the pinion;

96 engaging the rack 100 on'the rod 88, the forward thrust of the rod 88," causingafor-w ward ;movernent ofthe sprocket 39., In a drying; apparatus of; this character the; sprocket'chain expands and contractsand it will bG-IIOtGdIIEI'OHL the foregoing that as the chain expands the constant IOIYWZLI'dLthIllSt of:the rod 88.:will always maintain the same i in proper contact with the sprockets; Themany advantages of thisconstructio-n will be i clearly apparent as itwill be notedlthatthe 7 same forms an effective; chain tightener which-will at allv timesretain the chain in proper relationwith the sprockets- What is claimed'is: z

1. In a drying apparatus, a cabinet, radia j, tors disposed parallel with the side walls' and top wall of thecabinet, baffle walls :supported between the top andwall and floor-of the cabinet, said radiators beingdisposed be-. tween the baffle walls and the side walls-of port disposed within the cabinet, baflie walls;

spaced from the walls of, the cabinet, said walls being carried by said support, the upper: and loweredges of the baffle walls being spaced from the top and bottom walls of the cabinet, said upper edges being disposed at an angle, a conveying mechanism dis posed for travel between said bafile walls,

radiators disposed between said bafiie walls and the walls of the cabinet, said radiators extending parallel with the top wall of the cabinet, and a plurality of fans for forcing the air at the top of the cabinet through the space inclosed by the baffle walls to the space between the baflie walls and the walls of the cabinet.

3. In a drying apparatus, a cabinet, a support disposed within the cabinet,baflle walls spaced from the walls of the cabinet, said walls being carried by said support, the upper and lower walls of the cabinet being spaced from the top and bottom walls of the cabinet, said upper edges being disposed at an angle, a conveying mechanism disposed for travel between said baflle walls, radiators disposed between said baffle walls and the wall of the cabinet, said radiators extending parallel with the top wall of the cabinet, a plurality of fans for forcing the air at the top of the cabinet through the space inclosed port disposed within the cabinet, baflle walls spaced from the walls of the cabinet, said Walls being carried by said support, the upper and lower walls of the cabinet being spaced from the top and bottom walls of the cabinet, said upper edges being disposed at an angle, a conveying mechanism disposed for travel betweensaid baffle walls and the wall of the cabinet, radiators extending parallel with the top wall of the cabinet, a plu rality of fans for forcing the air at the top of the cabinet through the space inclosed by the baffle walls to the space between the baffle walls and the walls of the cabinet, and a V- shaped bafiie plate disposed transversely of the cabinet and arranged between the fans.

5. In a drying apparatus, a cabinet, a frame disposed within the cabinet, baflie walls supported by the frame, said walls being spaced from the walls of the cabinet with the upper and lower edges of said walls being spaced from the bottom and top walls of the cabinet, the upper edges of said baflle walls being disposed inwardly at an angle, angular supports for said baffle walls, a conveyer disposed for movement between said baflie walls, sprockets supporting said conveyer, a bracket supporting one of said sprockets, a beam disposed longitudinally of the cabinet, a beam forming a support for '35 said bracket, said bracket being mounted to move with respect to said beam, a rod secured to said bracket, a bracket supported by the beam, a pinion mounted on said shaft, a rack carried by the rod and arranged to mesh with said pinion and Weighted means actuating said shaft to impart a forward thrust to said rod.

6. In a drying apparatus, a cabinet, battle plates disposed within the cabinet and spaced from the walls of the same, means for heating the air between the baffle plates and the side walls of the cabinet, a V-shaped baffle plate disposed transverselyof the cabinet adjacent the top thereof and a fan disposed upon each side of said transversely disposed plate.

7. In a drying apparatus, a cabinet, radiators disposed adjacent the side and ceiling of the same, vertically disposed baiilc plates and fans disposed to force heated air from the space between the battle plates to the space between the baflie plates and the side walls of the cabinet.

8. In a drying apparatus, a cabinet, bal'llc plates disposed within the cabinet and spaced from the walls of the same, means for heating the air between the balile plates and the side walls of the cabinet, a bailie plate disposed transversely of the cabinet adjacent the top thereof and a fan disposed upon a each side of said transversely disposed plate.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, Ihave hereto aflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

LIONEL F. BOVVERS.

W'itnesses FRANK H. WVEIGEL, E WARD M. BARTCH.

G'opies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I C. 

